Harley Medical Group cosmetic surgery report

Figures from one of the UK's leading cosmetic surgery companies reveal that many consumers are so determined to have surgery that they are putting in extra hours at work to fund it.

According to the Harley Medical Group, which has 23 cosmetic surgery clinics in the UK and Ireland, 22 per cent of patients claim to have done overtime or taken on a second job in order to pay for their procedures.

In contrast, just 11 per cent of patients claimed to do so just six months ago, which underlines the effect the credit crunch is having on people's ability to afford non-essential services.

Liz Dale, director of the Harley Medical Group, revealed that as well as taking on extra work, many patients are dipping into their savings and cutting down on other luxuries such as holidays so that they can still have their cosmetic surgery.

"It's not uncommon for patients to research and plan for their cosmetic surgery [for] two to three years and for this reason, they're unlikely to want to now put this off and instead they consider their procedure to be an investment," she explained.